Carlos Alcaraz is currently competing in the Middle East swing at the 2026 Qatar Open. After winning his second-round match, his opponent, Valentin Royer, made a bold claim about him and Jannik Sinner, which prompted a response from the Spaniard.
Before the ATP 500 hard-court tournament in Doha, Alcaraz competed at the Australian Open. He defeated Novak Djokovic in the final, winning his first Melbourne Major title and his seventh Grand Slam singles title overall.
Carlos Alcaraz Reacts After Valentin Royer Makes Strong Claim About Him and Jannik Sinner After Qatar Open 2R Loss
Alcaraz is the top seed at the 2026 Qatar Open, and he began his campaign by defeating Arthur Rinderknech 6-4, 7-6(5) in the first round. He then faced Royer in the second round, securing a 6-2, 7-5 victory in just one hour and 36 minutes, advancing to the quarterfinals.
After the world No. 1’s victory over Royer in the second round, the players exchanged handshakes at the net. There, the Frenchman naturedly remarked that he intended to return and defeat both the Spaniard and Sinner. Alcaraz took the comment sportingly, responding that he would be waiting for Royer.
“I’ll come to you and Jannik [Sinner]. Don’t worry. Some day!” Royer said.
“I will wait for you, man,” Alcaraz replied instantly.
Meanwhile, Sinner, seeded second at the Qatar Open, won against Tomáš Macháč (6-1, 6-4) and Alexei Popyrin (6-3, 7-5) in the first two rounds. With that, he secured his place in the quarterfinals, where he is set to face the sixth seed, Jakub Menšík.
Who Will Alcaraz Face at the 2026 Qatar Open QF?
Following his win over Royer in the second round of the 2026 Qatar Open, Alcaraz is set to face seventh seed Karen Khachanov in the quarterfinals of the tournament. In addition to his singles campaign, the Russian also participated in the doubles event alongside Andrey Rublev, and they lost in the first round to the third-seeded pair of Harri Heliövaara and Henry Patten.
In singles, Khachanov began his campaign at the ATP 500 hard court tournament in Doha by defeating lucky loser Shintaro Mochizuki with a score of 6-1, 3-6, 6-4 in the first round. He secured his place in the quarterfinals by eliminating Márton Fucsovics with a score of 6-2, 4-6, 6-4 in the second round.
Alcaraz and Khachanov have met five times on the ATP Tour, with the World No. 1 winning all five matches. Their most recent encounter was in the fourth round of the 2025 Italian Open, where Alcaraz emerged victorious, 6-3, 3-6, 7-5. He then went on to defeat Sinner in the final, claiming his seventh Masters 1000 title and 19th career title.
The winner of the quarterfinal match between Alcaraz and Khachanov at the 2026 Qatar Open will advance to face either defending champion and fifth seed Rublev or Stefanos Tsitsipas in the semifinals of the tournament.
